The progress made in stem cell biology over the past decade has opened up exciting new opportunities for basic and translational scientists worldwide. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are particularly useful because scientists can differentiate them into many different cell types that are relevant for drug discovery and clinical therapies. Stem Cell Translation Laboratory (SCTL) scientists investigate iPSCs that have been derived by reprogramming adult cells (e.g. skin cells) into embryonic-like stem cells. These patient and disease-specific cells have the potential to become any cell type of the human body. The iPSC technology is particularly promising for clinical application because they use a patients own cells. Hence, this approach may prevent complications such as immune suppression, which typically occur when cells are transplanted from other donors. In addition, under appropriate cell culture conditions iPSCs can be scaled up to produce the large amount of cellular material needed for disease research, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Ongoing work at NCATS is aimed at bringing solutions to scientific and technical problems, including quality assurance and standardization, in order to translate this technology into routine clinical use.